National Conference president Farooq Abdullah joined ‘Aarti’ (special prayers) at the revered Mata Vaishno Devi shrine atop Trikuta hills in Reasi district of Jammu and Kashmir on Tuesday evening.
Abdullah was accompanied by Deputy Chief Minister Surinder Choudhary, Minister for Food and Civil Supplies Satish Sharma, grandsons Zamir and Zahir and several senior leaders of National Conference.The former chief minister reached Katra, the base camp for pilgrims visiting the famous shrine, on board the specially designed Vade Bharat train from Srinagar this morning, his first trip after the inauguration of the service by Prime Minister Narendra Modi on June 6.
"Mata has invited me. What could be less than this? It is a call from Mata. Aaya hai bulawa sherawali da,” Abdullah said responding to a question about whether he intended to visit the shrine.Before joining the evening ‘Aarti’ at the sanctum sanctorum, Abdullah said he is going for ‘darshan’ of the Mata and would seek her blessings for peace, development and communal harmony.
Donning a sun-visor hat, Farooq Abdullah boarded the train from Nowgam Railway Station in Srinagar on Tuesday. He took his first ride on the newly inaugurated Vande Bharat Express from Srinagar to Katra on Tuesday and said he was “overwhelmed” to see Kashmir finally connected to India’s rail network.
He was greeted at the Katra terminal — the base camp for Mata Vaishno Devi pilgrims — by deputy chief minister Surinder Choudhary and Jammu NC president Rattan Lal Gupta."Mata ne bulaya hai. Aaya hai bulawa shera wali ka" said National Conference chief Farooq Abdullah as he reached Shri Mata Vaishno Devi Katra railway station on the Vande Bharat train from Nowgam Railway Station.
Farooq Abdullah said he was teary eyed seeing the development and expressed hope that the new rail link would facilitate a greater influx of Amarnath pilgrims to the 3,880-metre-high holy cave shrine, with this year’s yatra set to begin on July 3.“This is the biggest benefit for us,” Abdullah said, calling the development a major milestone for trade, tourism, and the emotional bond between regions.
“My heart is overwhelmed and my eyes filled with tears on seeing Kashmir finally getting connected with the country's rail network. I congratulate the engineers and the workers for making it happen,” Abdullah told reporters.
Calling it “the biggest victory for the people,” he said the train would make travel easier, promote business, and strengthen “love and friendship” between Jammu and Kashmir and the rest of the country.“We hope that the yatris from across the country will use the facility to turn up in large numbers for darshan at Amarnath cave shrine during the upcoming pilgrimage,” he said.
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